I discovered while visiting Northern Germany that the word "See" (which is etymologically related to English "sea") can refer to either a lake or the sea, depen

I discovered while visiting Northern Germany that the word "See" (which is etymologically related to English "sea") can refer to either a lake or the sea, depending on the gender of the article that precedes it - masculine for lake: "der See", feminine for sea: "die See". The result is a lake called the "Selenter See" that is a short distance from the Ostsee (the Baltic Sea). Pretty confusing at first!